Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-10-01
achievement If IL did not bring Office
and power to him who thrusts himself
forward as the issue in the coming
olnciinn
Silver.

Mr.. WATrERsoN says that now is an
exceedingly opportune time for the re-
newed consideration of the constitu-
tional money standard. The Massa-
chusetts Republicans are ready for the
fight.
In their platform adopted this week
they demand the cessation of compul-
sorry silver coinage. Any and every
State has the right under the Federal
Constitution TO make gold and silver
not gold or silver-a legal tender for
debts.
We quote from the COUricr-J0urnaL
1.-THE Constitution made fWo coin
ages the legal tender alone for at the
States, and it did so with manifest
design. That solemn Injunction upon
the several States, which there is no
power on earth capable OF setting aside,
except by fraud or unlawful usurpation
of the rights of the people--it had
definite purpose. The makers of that
instrument, maniiestly designed to es-
tablish forever conjoint standard for
value measurement, and they did
this with a reason. They designed
TO secure the commercial econ.
omy and system from an arbitrary and
shifting standard like paper money, of
only nominal value, and dependent for
the amount of its issue only upon the
vagaries OF proletariat demagogIes, they
desired also to establish an eifcctual
munin ont against the risk of having the
measure Of value increas cd in capacity
while retaining the original bimetallic
name, the dollar, by substituting the
COINS of one metal for both. They,
therefore, designed TO guard the value
standard against the ignorant clamors
oithemultitude, bymeans of paperinha-
ton on the one hand, and against the
Vaccinations of capitalists on the other
hand TO add feloniously to their wealth
by raising the value Of their special
commodity by acts of law The Con
sttution designed to establish value
STANDARD which should be ample for the
healthy development of wealth and
trade, and would be at the same time
regulated as 10y the laws of nature in re-
spect to value and issue by the cost of
production. The Constitution stands
violated to-day and thwarted as to both
of those designs.
"The people have not been wise in
permitting this to be done. There is,
from every part Of the country, even
including the capitalist interest. Mt
whose command the crime and blunder
Of tmpering with and destroying the
constitutional money standard, n com
mon voice for proclaiming that their
interests are being harmed or ruined by
an insuliciency of current money.
The makeshift of paper money as
a tender does not furnish relief because
all paper money, even including the
logal-tender paper is bat a marker or
counter for the valuations of the single
gold standard. And even the silver
CONS, including the lePal-tcnder dollar,
are also but markers for the gold |
standard of measurement, as every |
ounce Of silver that is coined, like |
every pound of pulp that is made into
notes, is bought and mea-
sured by that supreme agent Of the |
money kings, the single standard gold |
dollar
at is, therefore, an opportune time |
to return to the true standard, which is
the standard both of law, of honesty, |
and of expansion, as situations like the |
present are always perilous on account
of the danger of the pinch of money |
egging on the public into ruinous
make shifts and devices of initiation"